US Powerball has now reached a hefty $650million prize

The Multi-State Lottery Association runs Powerball for 44 U.S. states as well as Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Picture: G-Jun Yam/AP

INTERNATIONAL - Nobody won a Powerball jackpot of $535million (R7.03billion) in a draw on Saturday night, meaning that the grand prize will grow to about $650m, the second-highest winning level in the Powerball history.

The numbers drawn were: 17, 19, 39, 43, 68, with a special Powerball number of 13 and a Power Play of 4X.

With no winner of the grand prize, it will grow to an estimated $650m ahead of the next draw on Wednesday, according to the website for the game. The Multi-State Lottery Association runs Powerball for 44 US states as well as Washington, DC, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.

The $535m jackpot that was up for grabs last Saturday ranked as the fifth-largest in the game’s 25-year history. The highest-ever Powerball jackpot was nearly $1.6bn in a draw that took place in January 2016.

It was split between three winning tickets. The odds of winning the jackpot are one in 292million. The odds are always the same, regardless of the size of the prize.

The odds of winning any prize, including one as small as $4, are about one in 25, the association said.

No one has hit the Powerball jackpot in the semi-weekly drawings since June 10, when a California man won $447.8.